BTM: Chapter 7 – Reaching You

“What the fuck are you talking about, Ren?!” Mizudori was so shocked that his eyes were opened wide and his mouth agape.

Shirō remained still and just smiled. “I thought you would be the one who would be surprised but it looks like I’m the one who’s really surprised, ha ha.”

“Ano~~ forget about what I said,” Kichirō drew back his blushing face.

Shirō reached out for the other boy’s hand, he tried catching Kichirō’s attention, who was, in turn, avoiding his gaze: “You don’t have to be so shy about it. You already said it, he he,” he gently said.

“I bet this Shirō is a playboy,” Mizudori narrowed his eyes as he whispered in Kichirō’s ear.

Kichirō looked at the ‘rabbit’ and furrowed his brows while the ‘rabbit’ let out a “hehe” sound. After that, he looked again at the other boy’s face, then wryly laughed: “Uhm… I was just practicing for a play… Yeah! A school play. The scene was like what happened just now so I got carried away with my role, sorry…”

“Oh, but you do know that I was serious when I said that, Ki-chan?” Shirō looked earnestly at the other boy.

“Yes,” Kichirō shyly said then averted his gaze. “Ano… I actually really like you, too.”

Mizudori flew about half a meter away from the two. I didn’t know it would be this hard going back to the past. These were the words that lingered in his mind.

“Is that for real?” Shirō beamed as he held on tightly to Kichirō’s hand, as if he was his most cherished treasure.

Kichirō incessantly blushed. His cheeks were bright red all over so that he wanted to cover his face with his hands. A moment ago, he was but a budding rose, now he was a red rose in full bloom, as if kissed by the eternal sun’s warmth. After remaining still for a while, he nodded in response to what Shirō asked.

Shirō looked delighted seeing that Kichirō confirmed what he had in mind, but then, his heart sunk when a thought suddenly flashed in his mind, “What about… Miyuki?”

“Hmm… Forget about that bitch,” Kichirō’s face became distorted upon hearing that name. The rose that was once in full bloom, immediately wilted.

Shirō was astonished when Kichirō talked ill of his own girlfriend. Is he really the Kichirō I used to chat with over the phone and in Friendster? “What do you mean?” He asked.

“There are things that I found out about her that she never told me about. I’m going to break up with her soon,” Kichirō explained.

“Isn’t it just a bit too fast? I feel like I’m the reason why you’re breaking up with her.” Shirō was happy, deep down inside, but he could not put his mind at ease, thinking about the ifs and whys.

“Don’t say that. You’re one of the many reasons, but the main reason is because she will soon ruin my life,” Kichirō calmly said.

Shirō was confused. How could he come up with the idea that Miyuki will ruin his life?

Kichirō read his mind. “You will find out soon.”

After eating, Kichirō thought of something. “Shi-kun, how about if we don’t go to the meeting? I want to go somewhere else,” he said.

“Hmm, where do you want to go?”

“I don’t know. Maybe we could just hang around, go to the mall or do something.”

“Do something? Is that what I think it is? Ha ha,” Shirō laughed.

“What do you mean?” Here we have Kichirō, the king of naivety.

“He meant to have sex,” Mizudori explained then made a “hmpf” sound.

“Is it possible that you are thinking of THAT?!?” Kichirō exclaimed.

“You look funny and cute when you’re surprised. Always the naive one, you’re my old Ki-chan, right. I thought you were your own twin brother, if you have any. That would be really funny ha ha,” Shirō teased.

“Yeah right. I completely read what he had in mind. Ren, I’ll go home first. You can enjoy your day with your soon-to-be-boyfriend,” Mizudori said then disappeared into thin air.

Now that the loud and noisy floating ‘rabbit’ left, Kichirō felt so relieved so that he almost jumped for joy. He could now have more time with the boy who he had been yearning for, for such a long time… So long, that he had forgotten that he, himself, changed in many ways.

The two decided going to the park. The cold northern winds blew hard at the top of its lungs, sending chills to all mortal beings, who frolic under the midday sun. The park was blessed with a variety of trees: from lifeless tree trunks, that were in deep slumber, preparing for spring to arrive, while it’s winter; to verdant, evergreen trees. The lake in the park made the surroundings majestic as it glimmered under the sun, matched with the fountains that danced in unison and rhyme. Kichirō snuggled his hands in his hoodie’s pockets to get some warmth. He grimaced and shuddered when the wind blew hard. The other boy noticed this so that he held on to Kichirō’s hands. He made the other boy face him. With a shy and distorted look, Kichirō exclaimed: “What are you doing!?”

“Aren’t you feeling cold?”

“Uhm, yeah. How did you know?” Kichiro awkwardly asked.

“It’s written all over your face, silly,” Shirō scolded. “Why did you want to go to the park? You know it’s still a bit cold lately.”

Kichirō pursed his lips. He then said, “I’ve always wanted to go here with you. I’ve dreamed of going to the zoo, the movie theater and other places with you… But I’ve never imagined being with you in the park.”

Shirō took out a crimson scarf from his bag. He wrapped it around Kichirō’s neck and made the other wear his hood. He made Kichirō place one of his hands inside his own pocket. Shirō took the other then snuggled it inside his pocket… Two hands intertwined. “You can keep this scarf. It’s my gift from me, to you.”

Kichirō was shocked by the sudden turn of events. His heart fluttered and felt there were butterflies in his tummy… It was love… He knew it all along. This was the love and care that he chose to let go, more than a year ago. He wanted to take his hand out of Shirō’s pocket but the other boy was firmly holding on to his hand.

“What the hell are you doing?” Kichirō roared.

“You’re cold, right? I’m making it warmer for you,” Shirō calmly said then swayed his bangs away from his handsome face.

Kichirō glanced at the other and marveled at his face. He could not get over this face… Not in a million years. The tiger facade that he wanted to wear slowly dissolved, then turned into a harmless kitten’s facade. “Fine, I will let it go for now… But it’s just because I’m feeling cold.”

“You can say whatever you want but I will do what is always best for you.”

Upon hearing this, Kichirō’s pale face, due to the cold atmosphere, slowly blushed a hint of pink. Shirō chuckled when their eyes met. He never thought Kichirō was they type of guy who was quite easy to read.

Meanwhile, while Mizudori was lying on Kichirō’s bed, he was struggling as he thought of the hardships and possibilities that he will encounter soon? Will he be successful with his mission? Or will it all go down the drain, just like that… He was hurt… Yes, he was… Especially now that his memories were back. He rolled from side to side, then finally flew into the air. Suddenly, the room became dark. The ever-bright sun was soon embraced, then covered by the moon.

“What’s wrong with you, usagi-chan?” A voice of an old man echoed within the room.

Mizudori glanced everywhere to find where the voice was coming from. He could not make out where it was to the point that he looked from left to right.

“I’m outside the door, kindly open the door for your Ojīsan, will you?” Someone knocked outside the door.